#john mirrors

[alltingfinns]

TEH, part 3

I wasn’t sure how much there was left after the bonfire scene but apparently there’s about a half hour left, meaning these parts are in neat thirds.

I write as if anyone else knows what I’m talking about when these drop randomly once a year or so.

Sherlock remained more in focus from John’s perspective.

Still so cute how Sherlock immediately must hustle his parents out when his crush heterosexual former roommate shows up.

Mum putting her foot in the doorway in case there was any doubt who’s the “sherlock” of these two.

“Your parents? Your parents? Those were your parents?”

John who desperately wants to understand Sherlock. How much he would have wanted to interrogate them, I’m sure. But then he has to giggle at the absurdity of the Holmes brothers having such (seemingly) ordinary parents.

And then the hurt. “Did they know too?”

“So that’s why they weren’t at the funeral!” Because if they had been, John would have recognized them now of course. But also he probably thought they had died or something, making their existence as ordinary people even more shocking.

“Wasn’t working for me.” If Molly and John not mirrors then why this exact line. Why not “Well, everybody hated it” or “Didn’t fit me” or “Kept tickling my lips”.

Just saying. Plenty of options.

“Last night” “Too nebulous” goes on with the case.

There’s all the likelihood that, like with Sherlock’s survival, the writers just didn’t care who put John in the bonfire. They just wanted John in the bonfire. So that Sherlock could heroically rescue him.

And yes I was thinking about how this episode takes place “today” as in 5th November as in Guy Fawke’s Day. (Though the cool kids call it John Johnson’s day.)

Am I just that Johnlocked that I find it adorable that Sherlock angled the laptop so that John would see more/be more included?

Sumatra road is 28 minutes by car from Westminister. Definitely not below it. Gotta take some creative liberties for those sweet canon references.

Why hasn’t Moran just left town entirely? Oh well.

A bit of illegal breaking and entering as people walk by without giving them a second glance. That’s big cities for you.

I forgot how far they have to go through this.

Love that John got to comment on the demolition charges.

Ah, I get it! Moran still has to be in like radio range or something.

“Why do you think I know what to do?” Really, Sherlock? Really?

“And a soldier, as you keep reminding us all!” Sherlock why are you being so petty, you love him being a former soldier.

051113 is the bomb code.

I just love the line “Use your mind palace” because it makes me think of how intelligence is weirdly used as a superpower in media.

Also that you can vaguely hear Sherlock saying “off” as he’s panicking with his hands around the bomb.

John is so fucking smart but also maybe he also just has faith in Sherlock being clever enough. But anyway just cutting through the bullshit, this is a trick.

Maybe Sherlock is underhanded here. But John finds this sort of stuff difficult.

So here we get John Watson’s version of Dean Winchester’s purgatory prayer. “Of course I forgive you”

This explanation is definitely unreliable narrator. Sherlock wasn’t quite as in control as he likes to portray himself so of course he makes it out otherwise. But he’s convinced that Moriarty died but again: A. Singular. Body.

This explanation means that it was John that most importantly had to buy it. Possibly because close friend, with medical certification who Sherlock nonetheless felt he couldn’t trust the acting skills of.

I think this scene happened (more or less) and sometime after the proper end to the episode. But like even Anderson(Philip) noticed that the explanation is lacking.

Sherlock laughing like the utter little shit he is.

“There’s always an off switch.” Say that to the undefusable bomb. Although technically it did have an off switch, it was just too complicated to be tried without knowing the proper sequence.

Getting John to laugh even when he’s angry with him.

They really are the right kind of wrong for each other.

Mycroft being les miserable. XD

“Weddings. Not really my thing.”

You’re going to be planning and arranging the whole thing you miserable bastard!

A difference between Molly and John. She went for the suspiciously similar substitute, he went for (what he believed to be) the exact antithesis.

Oh my little lestrolly heart at Lestrade asking if Molly and Tom are serious. Although he is likely doing it because he is the one who would comment on the elephant.

“Real life is rarely so neat.” The goddamn bonfire.

They’re literally saying that the one true explanation for Sherlock surviving is that John asked him to.

“Time to be Sherlock Holmes.” *wears the damn hat*

Sherlock’s mind palace is certainly nicer than Magnussen’s.

[coffeeteaitsallfine]

Hi, I'm a new TJLCer and I joined the fandom post S4. Could you explain all the John mirrors? I don't understand any of them lol. And how do people make friends in the fandom, y'all seem like you been friends since kindergarden.

as;dlkgjsdl  not since kindergarten no but we do have some shared trauma from experiencing s4 together and the ensuing aftermath. the same critiques the same feelings on it as we were all trying to figure out s4 together. so that probably helped.

welcome though! for the mirrors thing... mirroring is a literary device similar to a foil. so since everything revolves around john and sherlock...most if not all the side characters reflect/mirror the core emotional story that’s happening with the main characters. So most obviously, at the beginning of ASiP, John is suicidal (as we see when he has nightmares and opens up his drawer to find a gun--its very telling) and then the main story throughout the episode is serial suicides. all the characters who are forced to k*ll themselves are john mirrors. sherlock has plenty of mirrors as well, but john has really collected a lot of them since s4 is all about john.

any character who is shown to have a similarity to John (or sherlock) is a mirror for that character. sometimes it’s subtle like a clothing comparison, personality trait, but usually it’s a parallel in their emotional arcs. 

in THOB, the sherlock and john mirrors are the innkeepers, the john mirror literally says the same words as him, and sherlock’s mirror is named “billy.” As of s3 we know that sherlock’s real name is william so every character named bill or billy is either a reference to billy wilder or a sherlock mirror. John characters are often given J names. It depends.

ALSO the innkeepers are placed in front of their respective mirrors in front of ACTUAL mirrors. These two videos are old but give you the basis for john mirror spotting. if you want me to explain the s4 mirrors I can probably do that in a different post if you’d like.

[sarahthecoat]

OK, doing my homework, I THINK this will be a link to the document, but if it’s to the whole folder that’s ok too. @artfulkindoforder BLESSINGS saved a bunch of LSIT’s metas in a google folder, and this is the one I was riffing on when I posted about the series of screenshots from ASIB earlier today. If this is to the whole folder, then the document is the one called “Reply heartbreak music in the hiker scene”, and it goes through that whole scene very carefully. OH it’s actually in there twice, also as “Reply Hiker heartbreak music” (different discussion threads maybe?)

OK, so that’s one of the early metas I was thinking of when I wrote my post. I know there’s more.

[twocandles]

I think I saw some theories that in the “anyone” scene Molly was being forced to say these words by someone, or that things are not what they seem and it got me thinking in the other way: 

Molly is a John mirror. So Sherlock was actually speaking to John in that scene. :’(

That would also explain more of Molly’s presence in the episode. John can’t really speak to Sherlock directly because he’s supposed to focus on Mary and Rosie. But at the christening Molly rips on Sherlock that he’s incapable of human emotions. Maybe that was John speaking.

[alltingfinns]

The Empty Hearse part II

This is when they started the running gag of “at least he remembers that Lestrade’s first name begins with a G”. Before this I just figured he learned Lestrade had a first name and that would be that.

Honestly I’m pretty bad with names too.

Ahh, the hug he didn’t get from John.

Who is awake at night.

Sherlock’s lucky mrs Hudson didn’t bonk him on the head with the sauce pan.

Yet another ridiculous theory. (Once again dependent on no Moriarty corpse.)

The giggling. The crummy photo print stapled on a terrible dummy. Amazing!

And the very not canon ship that “is just as plausible” as the sherlolly kiss.

Also the slash fan is the one objecting to the hat. (Hat = public image based on misconception. Introduced in the same episode as Irene Adler, who is buried in public misconceptions.) Because she does take it seriously. So while she gets it wrong, she’s still closer to the truth than Anderson.

Mary reading John’s blog like:

Seriously, she’s reading John’s (heterosexual flat matey) description of Sherlock like she’s devouring a harlequin novel.

“Don’t read that!” Someone feeling exposed?

I understand John’s annoyance with her. She’s complaining about “six months of bristly kisses” but until last night he had no idea she disliked it. So she’s the one making it about Sherlock.

She’s very pointedly needling him about Sherlock. It all looks very innocent and cute and almost supportive, until you put it in the larger context.

John has good reason to be mad at Sherlock and want to keep his distance. He has a lot to process and she should be supporting him in that or at least not poke an open wound. Yet she seems to be taking Sherlock’s side, seemingly trying to push for reconciliation when John is vulnerable.

We later learn that she is a masterclass manipulator. This ties back into the failed proposal scene when she rearranged his carefully prepared words. She is needling him about his relationship to Sherlock, explicitly comparing it to their relationship. Basically she’s feeding John’s paranoia about how obvious his devotion to Sherlock is, which activates his “no homo” reflex. “Or I’ll marry you.”

This all builds on the metaphorical facial hair of the episode; John becoming more determined to marry her now because if he doesn’t, everyone will know.

He still shaves it off though.

I love this scene with Mycroft. It is so fucking meta!!

But also I just automatically laugh when the “intellectual master strategist chess game” is revealed be operation!

“Oh bugger!” “Oopsie!”

This series is where these two are their most siblingy.

“Can’t handle a broken heart, how very telling”

Oh Sherlock

You don’t even know

But you will

You will

“I’m the smart one” is such a sibling thing. It took me forever to realize that my older brother wasn’t smarter than me, he was just better than me at some things. I didn’t realize how much better I was than him at math for one thing, so finding that out helped a lot.

Sherlock is like a new convert that wants to spread the message of the joys of friendship.

Mrs Hudson. If there’s anything that can make me doubt, it’s the passing of Una Stubbs. It’s just hard to imagine even one more episode without her.

Sherlock is just passing the time. Basically he’s bored without John. And maybe he’s hoping that Mary will “talk him around”

Making deductions without even meaning to is a family trait it seems. (Not genetically, more like enforced habits.)

“I’ve written a blog on the varying tensile strengths of different natural fibers”

Mrs Hudson may be sarcastic, but as a mechanical engineer who knits, I do have a crying need for this blog.

And now the final point Sherlock was building up.

“Why would anyone mind?”

Also the callback to “how would you know” cements it even further that, at least up until including ASiB, Sherlock’s not had sex. He’s basically turning the words around, which only makes sense if they made a direct hit in the first place.

Look I just need older queer virgin representation. It’s important to me. (And by older, I literally mean anyone past their twenties, which isn’t even old. It’s just treated as too old when it comes too sex and lack of experience in it.)

That cheeky wink to mrs Hudson.

“Undescended testicles.” So balls that haven’t dropped?

I kind of love this trope of two conversations = one dialogue through smash cut.

And now Molly becomes the unquestionably definitive John mirror: literally taking his place.

Solve crimes = date. So very much a mirror.

Also note how Molly, who we learn is engaged, eagerly jumps at the chance of dating Sherlock. A reminder that this is what John would do if certain pesky things like internalized biphobia and society weren’t in the way.

“You’re not being John, you’re being yourself.” She may be a John mirror, but she’s a) her own character and b) not actually John.

People call this version of Sherlock Holmes an unrelenting asshole. But personally I love his refreshing honesty. He’s not interested in the money he could be paid for dragging out the case with the rich husband who embezzled himself to have an affair. Recommending a divorce lawyer for the wife in the same breath he deduced the scumbag.

John just watching the clock tick. Even after Mary’s needling that morning, he’s still counting the seconds until he can go see Sherlock.

Also I feel this next scene corrects one big problem I had with the original version of A Case of Identity: by having Sherlock make the confrontation in front of the victim.

Say what the fuck ever you will about BBC Sherlock, at least they gave this woman the closure that Doyle never gave her.

Also the wrath in his glance to Molly. Sherlock will not suffer assholes that manipulate their stepdaughters. (Could have used more horsewhip, but the victim getting closure is far more important.)

Interesting choice to turn the titles into porn parodies.

Also John just immediately assuming it’s Sherlock.

Why are you thinking that Sherlock would pose as a patient to peddle porn to you, John? Why is that your immediate conclusion?

John? Why does an old man showing you his porn collection make you think that your old heterosexual flat mate is pranking you? John?

I love how overly obviously staged it is.

Yes, Sherlock, you clearly need to analyze this fully clothed skeleton sitting upright by a desk to determine it’s a hoax.

John’s voice in his head.

“How I did it” by Jack the Ripper.

Classic! Everyone loves putting Sherlock Holmes up to solving the most famous unsolved case in London’s history. But this highlights why it always falls flat, the case is still unsolved and attempts to come up with a solution to it will inevitably feel wrong somehow.

Of course the idea of Jack writing an OJ style tell all book, hiding it in a secret compartment in the desk and then just die…

Again, Anderson, the one with the incredibly out there theory/sherlolly fanfic. Just saying.

“You forgot to put your collar up” highlighting that Sherlock does it for John’s sake.

“Why indeed, John.”

Molly getting some really mixed signals here.

Hmm. In Sherlock’s mind being different doesn’t rule out friendships, but romance seem fantastical. How very telling.

“Nothing on any map.” Except later you’re going to be like, oh yeah, no there’s one place.

That’s some damn good resolution on the surveillance.

Instruction to the editor: Go nuts on this sequence. Pretend you’re making a fan made music video.

John oscillating on the pavement.

Also, society stepping in to prevent him from seeing Sherlock/getting the date Molly was angling for.

“Fancy some chips?” Oh god. TLD feels. I can’t.

Did he fuck the chippy guy? It’s one thing to say something that could be innuendo, but it’s the little smile when he says it. Again, I personally prefer him being a virgin. Not because I feel he should be “saved” for John, but because media actually exploring virginity in relation to queerness is interesting to me. But I will not deny reality as it is presented to me.

Plus I’m not sure Sherlock should be trusted with a power drill.

Sherlock does care for Molly.

“Not all the men you fall for can turn out be sociopaths.” “Maybe it’s just my type.”

John mirror.

Also. Foreshadowing.

Remember to check your bonfire stacks for hedgehogs before lighting them up.

Mary sees it’s a skip code. Could probably solve it herself. But she takes it to Sherlock. Because it’s her job. (Also, pretty sure Magnussen confirmed that it wasn’t him at a time when he had no reason to lie about it.) This is something else, this is what she was employed for. Maybe. Honestly, I’m still working out her motivation, because I don’t think her potential employer would care for some of her later choices.

Dropping the chips = saving John is what Sherlock will save his own life for.

Get yourself someone who will step out in traffic to hijack a motorbike for you.

I love how Sherlock thinks in vectors.

Always listen to little kids when they say cryptic shit. That’s when it matters.

This scene illustrates the difference between Sherlock and Mary.

To quote: “Should I ever marry, Watson, I should hope to inspire my wife with some feeling which would prevent her from being walked off by a housekeeper when my corpse was lying within a few yards of her.”

Basically, the trained assassin/fiancee is standing off to the side while the supposed “sociopath” is diving into the fire to dig out John.

Stay tuned for part III after I handle my Duolingo.

[alltingfinns]

Ending the year in Sherlock/TJLC style.

The Empty Hearse

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: it’s very telling that this version of events is dependent upon the removal of Moriarty’s body.

I can’t imagine putting contacts in with pliers. But hardly the least credulous thing going on.

And the closest sherlolly is ever going to get to a canon kiss. When I watched this with my brother, he was still buying the whole explanation and was just surprised that we got a kiss scene.

Heteronormativity is a helluva drug.

Had no idea the hypnotist guy was famous first time I watched.

“Bollocks!” You said it, Lestrade. Never mind the kiss or the perfect corpse dress up or the hypnotism, you can’t bungee jump discreetly.

But Anderson thinks it’s obvious because it keeps his sherlolly fic canon.

“There was a body.” A. Singular. Body. #moriartylives

I honestly wonder how many theories Anderson subjected Lestrade to.

I know the transition of the coffee cups to John’s eyes is haha funny, but it’s also drinks code funny. Blinded by heteronormativity, that one.

Also great job on turning his life around, “Mary”. 🙄

Might poke fun at the guard listening to music on the job, but it makes sense to want to drown out the beating of a prisoner who can’t very well escape a second time.

The torturer being a John mirror. (Unhappy love affair in the navy = Sholto, electricity not working in the bathroom = not good shaving and of course unfaithful wife.) Considering this is the season where Sherlock is most pained by his feelings for John, it makes sense. Ouch, but still makes sense.

The deep wounds in his back. If John only knew…

And that sweet smile about Baker Street… he smol

Boy, John does look so happy!/sarcasm

First time I learned about Guy Fawkes day was in an Enid Blyton book where the plot involved someone stealing the crime solving gang of youngings’ guy money. So I was proud of myself for being like

But like about a culture.

John really hasn’t been back since the funeral.

Kind of weird that Sherlock is okay with someone else shaving him when he’s been on the run, hunted and threatened for two years. But no one ever claimed the writers of this show actually understood ptsd.

Milieu. Or miljö, if you’re Swedish.

Ahh, sibling bickering. “I saved you” “no you sat and watched me getting beaten!” Classic.

“Field work! Ugh!” Very canon Mycroft. (Hence why he never leaves The Diogenes Club)

Passive aggressive Hudson is best Hudson!! 🤣

“Ages you.” The facial hair is a bit of a bad match there.

And again I’m sad that Una Stubbs didn’t live long enough for s5.

“Many bothans died for this info-“ “yeah yeah, where’s my Jawn?!?”

Of course Mycroft had a folder at the ready.

The facial hair must go!

Okay, so John’s grieving process is a bit much. But mrs Hudson… your income (supposedly) depends on renting out your one good apartment. Yet here you are letting it gather dust. “Not your mother” doesn’t seem quite right.

John, so stoked about his proposal, that mrs Hudson assumes he’s about to tell her he’s ill.

“I’m moving on.” What a normal heterosexual flat mate thing to say. What are you moving on from, John? The flat? You left it ages ago! Sherlock’s death? What does Sherlock being dead have to do with your relationship status? Why are you equating a proposal to your friendship (?) with Sherlock?

Hudson is way happier about John’s relationship than he is.

“So soon after Sherlock?”

Don’t you *deep breath* “well yes” at mrs Hudson, young man! You’re the one making the implications she’s inferring from.

Why is mrs Hudson shocked that it’s a woman? Bisexual erasure? Maybe she thought Sherlock was his closet key, or his exes were all beards. Well, not like any of those relationships lasted that long.

“Of course it’s a woman!” Of course. Because he’s moving on and don’t want any reminders of the “could-have-been”s. That’s why she’s short, blonde, has big eyes and is in his mind as far removed from Sherlock as possible.

“Sherlock was not my boyfriend!” No, just your “could-have-been”.

“I am not gay!” Immediate transition to Sherlock sighing.

“Jump out of a cake!” Very heterosexual flat mate of you, Sherlock.

“Baker Street?” Here I paused on Mycroft looking like he’s thinking “my dumb gay little brother really thinks he left London on pause, doesn’t he?”

“What life? I’ve been away!” At first I thought he really was just dismissive of John’s non-Sherlock life. But rewatching I can see a slacking of his face as he takes in the fact that of course John moved on. So he plasters on some false bravado to cover for his mistake of confusing the dream (returning to old life with John) with reality (missing out on his friends living their life).

“How would I know?” Trying almost desperately to save his little brother from the inevitable heartbreak.

And Sherlock feeling his upper lip. If not imagining bristly kisses, then why?

“It’s possible you won’t be welcome”. He can’t say it outright because a) Sherlock won’t believe him and b) Sherlock will just become more determined to prove Mycroft wrong.

The deerstalker = his public image. The coat = his armor.

Stop standing atop buildings!!

I love whenever he does drive by deductions.

This disguise on the go is so fun. Like I don’t care if it makes sense for him to get away with it or not, it’s just good old fun!

“Madam, can I suggest you look at this menu? It’s completely identical.” Fun!

And the fake accent!

All to amuse John who doesn’t even notice his dramatic reveals!

Hmm, The Quiet Man feels. John may be so used to seeing Sherlock everywhere that he doesn’t even think about seeing him in a waiter he never looks directly at.

Dear God in heaven, I’m not even twenty minutes in!!

The femme fatale entrance. It’d be only more perfect if she had her fur coat on.

“You’re the best thing that could have possibly happened to me.” “I agree. I’m the best thing that could have happened to you!”

Gaslighting girl boss.

You may not think it’s a big deal that she dropped the “possibly”. But John is always careful with his word choice. And Sherlock is the best thing that could happen to him, because he did the impossible before, and maybe he can again. He asked Sherlock not to be dead. Maybe…

Does she really have to giggle and prod him while he’s struggling with his words? Best thing my foot!

Did he steal that wine bottle from a table or even the kitchen/bar? The latter seems more likely what with it being unopened and all.

Direct look and the mood has extreme shift.

“Not dead.” Maybe not the best time to remind John of Irene.

“In my defense it was very funny.” 😠 “okay not a great defense”

“Does yours rub off too?” You know, a better title for this episode might have been “Everyone Bullying John Over His Ugly Mustache” though it would make for an awful title card. (EBJOHUM, almost sounds like a biblical name.)

“Donde estas, Yolanda?”

How Sherlock survived = what the fans/Anderson cares about

How Sherlock could do this to John = what actually matters to John/the writers.

The gag of the eating establishments getting progressively less refined as they’re thrown out for violence. 😘🤌 (Am I doing chef’s kiss right?)

Srsly, Sherlock. Why not bring in John into the secret when you already got 25 members of your homeless network involved? Is it because you’d rather he think you were dead? Because if you told John Danger Boner Watson that you’d travel the world to dismantle a criminal network, you knew he’d tag along? So instead he grieves your death. Lose-lose situation, I guess.

Wow, they sure are harping on John about his facial hair in the episode where he gets engaged to be married. No hidden meaning in that.

Even his beard doesn’t like his mustache.

John, this is how mrs Hudson felt. Don’t you see?

Tbf, John. Sherlock has seen your “acting” before. Also, anyone suspecting Sherlock faked his death would watch you more closely than any of the people Sherlock involved.

That said, he isn’t “over” reacting. Just reacting.

“Still a secret” love the extra in the background shaking his head at these terrible secret keepers.

“SWEAR TO GOD!” Angry John is very human, but also very funny.

Martin “do that with a face” Freeman acting out “can you believe this bitch?”

Love that this line that was used as an awesome epic voice over for the trailer, is just a reason for John to headbutt Sherlock in the episode itself.

“I’ll talk him around”. Gatekeeping girl boss. Putting herself in the position of mediator. At the start she was all “omg what have you done?” But now she’s on Sherlock’s side, supporting him in the face of her boyfriend’s (justified) anger.

Also could she pick a more femme fatale coat? Especially with that hairstyle.

“Can you believe his nerve?” “I like him.”

Forget supportive girlfriend, a work acquaintance would feel socially obligated to be more emotionally supportive!!

Stopping here. Apparently this episode will have to be a three part series of observation.

[twocandles]

(1) So, I read your theory on the car crash/Mary and baby die senario and I think you may be right and there WAS a crash, Sherlock was driving and something happened - something Sherlock was/feels responsible for - that probably involved Norbury ...

(2) and the car went into the Thames, which explains all the water imagery and reflections on Sherlock’s face. TST feels like a fiction, reminds me of TAB and Sherlock thinking Lady Carmichel was the villain when it was just the pilot in the plane..

(3) which makes me think Norbury was the “Lady Carmichel” of TST and she was just a witness to a terrible accident, perhaps involved as the other car in the crash? Sherlock can’t save Mary/the baby and John blames him for it? dunno, need answers lol

Hi, thank you for adding all this! WOW, that is a great idea. We know there are no real coincidences in this show so Vivian being involved in that way could just be as plausible as some of the other theories. ;) Or maybe it was her fault then that the accident happened in the first place and that’s why they put the blame on her?

Also, Vivian being widowed and her being a John mirror… hur hur hur.

And lmao I just checked the script again and “That probably accounts for the drink problem, too: the slight tremor in your hand”. Laying the parallels on thick there, Mofftiss.

Yes, we definitely need answers. (Original theory here.)

[siopea]

John, adulterer, reformed alcoholic, mention of a daughter...